OPTIMUM COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES, LLC

Community health workers (CHW) are lay members of communities who work either for pay or as volunteers in association with the local health care system in both urban and rural environments and usually share ethnicity, language, socioeconomic status and life experiences with the community members they serve. They have been identified by many titles such as community health advisors, lay health advocates, "promotores(as), outreach educators, community health representatives, peer health promoters, and peer health educators. CHWs offer interpretation and translation services, provide culturally appropriate health education and information, assist people in receiving the care they need, give informal counseling and guidance on health behaviors, advocate for individual and community health needs, and provide some direct services such as first aid and blood pressure screening. Some examples of these practitioners are Community Health Aides or Practitioners established under 25 USC 1616 (l) under HHS, Indian Health Service, Public Health Service.

An individual who is enrolled in an organized health care education/training program leading to a degree, certification, registration, and/or licensure to provide health care.

An Intermediate EMT is an individual trained and certified to perform intermediate life support treatment in medical emergencies based on individual state boards.

A collective term for persons with specialized training in various narrow fields of expertise whose occupations require training and skills in specific technical processes and procedures; and where further classification is deemed unnecessary by the user.

Source: NUCC, CMS